I had the pleasure of reading Happily by Chauncey Rogers and finished it this morning. I was truly charmed by this retelling! You can read my book review below.
Happily
by

If it doesn’t, make it.
Laure is a teenage street urchin just trying to get away. Where the rest of the world sees an enchanting love story, Laure sees royal incompetence and an opportunity to exploit it. She’ll have wealth and a way out of a life she detests, if she can only manage to hoodwink the royal family and survive to tell the tale.
My thoughts on this book:
Happily by Chauncey Rogers is a retelling of Cinderella, but totally unique and refreshing with an interesting premise! I sort of cherish retellings and couldn’t wait to see how Happily compared to some of the others I’ve read. As soon as I saw it, I instantly fell for the cover too! I had no idea what to expect, but rather than following the story of Cinderella and her wicked step-sisters, it follows what’s happening on the outside with Laure, the female protagonist. Laure is hard-headed, sort of pessimistic and chooses to live differently than a commoner while despising royalty as well. She’s a street urchin, and because she refuses to work, Laure barely makes ends meet by stealing the foods and necessities she needs to survive. With good reason (due to her past) she hates where she lives, Éclatant, and would love nothing more than to leave it all behind forever. During one of her thefts, she ends up causing problems for a boy named Luc and he simply won’t stand for it. He threatens to turn her in for her crime, until she shares her plans to trick the royals and in turn promises to pay him back. They both set out on an exciting, yet often dangerous journey filled with adventure.
I was genuinely connected with all the characters in the book. Laure is a very strong main character and I admired how she evolved throughout the story as she learned many lessons about honesty, love, and friendship. She’s headstrong and stubborn–nearly the opposite of Luc– but even so, she wants to do what’s right and they still had some similarities too. Luc is the type of person that wants to have a positive perspective in all situations. He’s optimistic and wants to help Laure see the good in people, and in life. With their likes and differences, they were nearly perfect medicine for one another. Prince Carl was everything I wanted him to be and truly, all the characters were great and meshed together well. Derived from the characters, one of my favorite morals in the story was to be yourself and to stand up for what you believe in.
I was pleased with the writing and the pacing was spot on which kept me interested throughout. It’s modern and without too much romance which I think makes it appealing to younger readers. The twists kept me guessing and the story wasn’t predictable. I felt like the narrative consistently took the direction I wanted it to. With that said, the ending felt a tad rushed, but with some wonderful surprises which the author tied up well. I can see this easily adapted into a movie as it’s remarkably different and stands out from others! I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys retellings or those looking for a magnificent story.
I’d like to thank Chauncey Rogers for bringing this book to my attention and sharing it with me.
My rating: 5 stars
- Paperback: 314 pages
- Publisher: Independently published (February 14, 2018)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1980284911
- ISBN-13: 978-1980284918
About the author:
Chauncey Rogers

Other books by Chauncey Rogers:
This is my ‘April: Single Word Title’ book for The Ultimate Reading Challenge.

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Wonderful review, Mischenko! Made me wanna grab a copy!!!
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Thanks, Noriko! I hope you love it. ❤ Take care. 😀
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Fantastic review. I enjoyed it, too.
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Thanks, James. Glad you loved this one as well. 🙂 ❤
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Wonderful review. It was so easily to become invested in these characters.
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Thanks, Nina. Totally! I loved them all really, and especially the characters who eventually saw the light. This book was everything I wanted it to be. Glad you enjoyed it as well! 🙂
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🙂
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I can see why you fell for the cover – love the design.
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Me too! Thanks, Teri. 🙂
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Glad you ended up enjoying the story after all and gave it some high praise indeed! 🙂
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For sure! Sometimes it’s just a matter of having your mind in the right place, lol. I’m hopeful I’m getting over my reading slump finally. 😉 ❤
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Fantastic review Mischenko! I loved this as well and I’m hoping for a sequel.😊
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Thanks so much! A sequel would be awesome. Hopeful as well. 💖
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I don’t know if I can say that I enjoy retellings as a genre but I have enjoyed some books that were retellings of fairy tales and/or other literary works. I usually admire an author taking someone’s else story and reinventing it but also keeping it familiar.
Happy May!
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Definitely! This one is very different and authors never cease to amaze me with their imaginations and writing. I was pleasantly surprised. Happy May to you as well. 💜 Thanks for your thoughts!
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Great review!! I bought this one when it came out. I’m looking forward to to reading it.
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Thanks, Donna! I hope you love it. I might just buy the paperback for our collection eventually. Can’t wait to hear your thoughts! 💙💖💙
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Great review. I enjoyed this book as well. I am so glad you enjoyed it too.
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Thank you, Carla. I’m glad you liked it so much as well. 😁
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Incredible review! I really loved how unique and refreshing this one was too!
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I’m so glad! Hoping for a second. 😉💜
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Me too!
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I just LOVED this book!💜 Chauncey Rogers is truly a talented author. I was so heavily invested in Luke and Laure!💙
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Me too, Dani! I wasn’t sure what to expect, but ended up loving it. ❤
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Hello,
I saw that you are a book blogger. I recently released a new book “Life of Randy”
I would love to send you a free copy in your preferred format to review on your blog.
Thank you for your time
Philip Lister
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Yes, you can send me a message under “Contact”. Thanks!
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I have filled out your contact form, if you could just email me with your preferred format I will email you a copy of my book. Thank you so much
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